Inscription of the year of casting – 1846 (Detail of bell)

Andréa Diogo2015

Faculty of Arts and Humanities of University of Porto

Religious and apotropaic motifs recur frequently on bells.The pentagram and the sign, or star of Solomon also have an apotropaic and amuletic purpose. The pentagram was one of the preferred features of medieval bell founders and came to be associated with the cross from the 13thcentury.From the 17thcentury, the year of casting normally appears on the bells along with the founder's name.